Method and apparatus for cooling drinking water



F. R. WEST 1,856,982 METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR COOLING DRINKING WATER May 3, 1932.

Filed Aug. l5, 1927 2 Sheets-Sheet /Vvr /Q//V/v. fa y. fix AM 54.4/ n r Fi 'II/2st.

F. R. WEST 1,856,982 METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR COOLING DRINKIG WATER May 3, 1932.

Filed Aug. 13, 1927 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Patented May 3,

mx B. Wm, l DETROIT, HICHIGLN', .ASSIGNOB T0 DETROIT, MICHIGAN, `A CORPORATION 0F Bron PRODUCTS INC., on' mcmaAN` muon AND A Prmrus ron COOLING DRINKING waren application mea august 1s, 19a?. serial No. siamo.

This inventionrelates to method and ap paratus for cooling drinking water, and has to do particularly with the provision of an extremely simple, compact and efficient 5 mechanical water cooling medium of the compression expansion type utilizing the flooded system for effecting the cooling of the drinkin water;

A any attempts have been made vto design l0 and commercially Vmanufacture mechanical drinkin water'coolers, and some of such attem ts ave involved the idea of cooling the dr' ing water by coolin units ofrboth the direct expansion and Hooded type. A great coolers have been merely paper atents or disclosures, and 'a few units which ave been commercially utilized have mainly utilized the idea of positioning the cooling medium or y cooling pipes around the drinking water con-l tainer, or have utilized the idea of passing pipes containing drinking water through rine or other indirect cooling medium. It is the object of the present invention to r provide an extremel compact and simple water cooler which ta es up a minimum space and which at the same time is extremely efcient in Operation. I obtain these desired results by utilizing a plane cylindrical cooling unit adapted to be substantially filled by liquid refrigerant and which coolin unit is designed to be immersed directly in t e drinking wa ter container. This cooling unit is connected up to a refrigerating apparatus of relatively large capacity, and such system is so designed as to maintain a practically constant supply of liquid refri erant vin the small cylindrical `cooling unit. g1`his liquid refrigerant main-l tained in the cooling unit results in the formation of a layer of ice completely around the cooling unit. This layer of ice is particularly important inthe successful operation of my system, and particularly for the reason that it prevents too rapid transmission of heat units between the water and the cooling unit immersed therein. It is well known in the art that when cooling units are immersed in water that the transfer of heat units is so rapid as to cause a very severe strain upon the compressor. I overcome this by providsunit.

number of these prior art drinking water` .ing a relatively large compressor compared to the coolin unit and by insuring the formatlon of a ayer of ice around the cooling t Other features of the present invention re- `late to details of construction and the positioning of the cooling unit within the drinking water container, as will be later brought out in the specification and claims In the accompanying drawings:

Fig. 1 is a sectional view through a water cooler constructed in accordance with the invention showing some of the parts in elevation.

Fig. 2 is a section taken on line 2-'-2 of c5 l Fi. 1. l

ig. 3 is an enlarged detail taken on line 3 3 of Fig. 2.

The refrigerating apparatus and the cooling water tank or container are preferably combined in a single compact cablnet which may be generally designated 1. This cabinet is relatively small and compares favorably in size to the standard water cooling stands utilizin cracked ice as a cooling medium. The coo ing water tank or container is preferably of relatively large size, say about five gallons, and may be designated 2. This cool- 1ng water tank is well insulated, as at 3. The bottom of the cabinet 1 is designed so as to 80 provide a suitable compartment for the refrigerating mechanism, the compressor being preferablylocated in the upper part of a compartment 4 and the motor and condenser being located beneath the compressor in a lower compartment 5.

The compressor which may be designated 6, and which is suitably supported by the main frame ofthe cabinet, is preferably of relatively large capacity compared to the cooling unit. The motor or driving power, which may be designated 7, is of relatively small capacity and is connected to the compressor by means of a suitable belt 8.' While the compressor is preferably of large capacity the motor may be of small` size and capacity because the ratio between the drivingwheel of the compressor and the driving pulley on the motor is relatively large, and

furthermore, because of the design ofthe sys- 103 tem and the arrangement of the parts the relatively large compressor is actuated for only a relatively small period of time during each da rIhe motor is preferably supported upon the base of the cabinet 1, not shown, and as the motor is small and light and so located it transmits a practically negligible amount of vibration in the cabinet frame. The compressor, however is rigidly supported upon a frame 9 whic 1 is secured to the frame of the cabinet at a point above the base, whereby the vibrations of the compressor are transmitted to the lower central half of the cabinet and partly absorbed by the cabinet before such v1- brations are transmitted to the floor. In other Words, I have not only obtained a very compact and small unit by placing the compressor above the motor in the condenser, but I have materially reduced the vibration by locating the motor upon one base and the compressor above the motor and upon a separate base.

The cooling unit 10 in this refrigeratm system is preferably of the flooded type an is cylindrical in shape and positioned in an upright position as illustrated. The coollng unit is connected to the compressor by a suitable conduit 11, the compressor is in turn connected to the condenser 13 by a suitable conduit 12 and the condensed liquid is conducted from the retainer tank 14 to the base of the cooling unit 10 throu h a suitable conduit.

The flow of the re rigerant from the compressor and condenser to the cooling unit is completely controlled by a small, helical capillary coil 15. This capillary tube is of a predetermined diameter and length 1n proportion to the capacity and R. P. M. of the compressor, and it not only smooths out the pulsations in the refrigerant caused by the operation of the compressor, but also restricts the flow and positive feeding of the refrigerant so as to maintain a constant level of the refri erant in the cooling unit 10. It will thus lie seen that I have eliminated all float valves, expansion valves, or any other apparatus for controlling the flow of the refrigerant other than the simple capillary tube 15. There is no chance of any clogging or stopping up of the system, and if when the machine is first started up at its initial operation, any water in the system should collect in said capillary tube it is easily accessible, and can be readily heated momentarily to clear the same of any ice slush. As there are no expansion valves or float valves to stick or get out of order it will be obvious that the height of the liquid refrigerant in the cooling unit will be very accurately maintained at a constant level. This is very essential to the eiiicient operation of the present device. It will be understood that the flow of refrigerant may be controlled by any suitable means, but I find that I obtain much better results by utilizing the arrangement shown.

The top of the cabinet is provided with a suitable standard opening 16 for receiving the usual bottle container 17, which in use is inverted with the neck of the bottle protruding within the tank 2, as shown. The cooling unit 10 is preferably positioned at one side of the tank 2, as shown in Figs. 1 and 3,

and preferably extends the height of the container 2. The cylindrical unit 10 is preferably of such diameter and so positioned as to clear the bottom part 0f the neck of the bottle 17. The outlet 18 with its customary valve 19 for the drinking water is preferably positioned at a point remote from the cooling unit 10.

The refrigerating apparatus being once started and thedrinking water poured into the container 2, a layer of ice will immediately commence to form along the entire surface of the cooling unit 10. The ice does not form only at one portion of the cooling unit, as would be the case with direct expansion, but forms along the entire surface thereof due to the presence of the liquid refrigerant within the unit l0. As this liquid refrigerant varies somewhat in heat abstracting properties the ice, which may be designated 20, formed thereon will soon assume a tapered form as shown. As soon as this layer of ice forms in the cooler it will be obvious that the large amount of the heat abstracting properties of the water will be in a manner reduced by the insulation provided b the layer of ice. This layer of ice will be o relatively large size and approximately of the proportion shown in the drawings whereby the water will not only be kept cold for a long period of time, but the strain on the cooling unit and compressor will be materially reduced. The temperature of the drinking water is very important in providing cold drinking water, but the correct temperature of the drinking water is even more important. By having the Water tank of relatively large capacity and by positioning the cooling unit at a point remote from the drinking water outlet, and by surrounding the cooling unit with a thick layer of ice, I have made it possible to keep the general mass of water cold without chilling to too great an extent the water adjacent the outlet.

A thermostatic element 21 is preferably immersed in the water and is positioned at a point between the outlet 18 and the coolingl unit 10 for regulatin the temperature of the drinking water and or controlling the operation of the compressor. This thermostat 21 is connected to a suitable control element 22 of any standard type.

It will thus be seen that I have provided a water cooling system, parts of which are so arranged and positioned as to form a very cui,

and the problem is not only large` capacity, that I have provided a -frigerating system rendering continuous opcompact and rigid structure, .taking upa minimum of space and being subject to a minimum amount of vibration of the nature which will be transmitted' to other parts of the frame. This element of vibration is ob viously very important for water` coolers of the present type which are designed to be placed in olliceswhere any material vibration will be extremely objectionable. It'will further be obvious that by utilizing a relatively large water container an'd 'by coolin vthe same with a cooling unit ofthe iloode ty in connection with a compressor of relative Y reeration, the great heat absorbin roperties of the water being insulated an t e refrigerant controlled with remarkable ease by the refrigeratin mechanism. The combination of a relative y large compressor, a small motor, a capillary tube, and the simple cylindrical cooling unit surrounded by a thick mass of ice makes it necessary to operate the compressor only for a very small period of ,f time during the entire day. Thus the com pressoris not only abnormally quiet during operation vbut its periods of operation are relatively infrequent, thus materially reducin the amount of vibrationat any time.

at I claim is:

1. The method of utilizing mechanical re-l cooling systems of the mec anical refrigerating type, which comprises cooling a relatively large body of' water by a volatile refrigerating medium contained therein, maintaining the supply of refrigerating medium h a source relatively large compared to the e ec tive area of the cooling unit, insulating said refrigerating medium from said water by a layer of ice and maintaining said refrig.; erat-ing medium whereby to maintain a layer of ice therearound, whereby to directly reduce the strain on the refrigerating unit.

3. In a mechanically refrigerated water cooler, the combination of a container for the water to be dispensed provided with an outlet, and a refrigerant evaporating chamber normally covered with a layer of ice and positioned within the water container at a point relatively remote from the said outlet. 4. In -a 'mechanically refrigerated water cooler, the combination of a container for the water provided with an outlet, and a refrigerant evaporating chamber within the 'water container which is positioned substantially at the op osite side of the container from the outlet w ereby the formation of ice on the said chamber will not interfere with the flow ,of Waterthrou h the outlet. i

5....lfn.. a mec anically refrigerated liquid cooler, tlie combination of a container for'the A the liquid to be dispensed-,said container-having an inlet for liquid positioned in the top thereof, and having a valve controlledoutlet for the liquid in one side thereof and positioned near the bottom of the container, and a refrigerant evaporating chamber within the liquid container which is positioned adjacent a wall ofthe container and relaively remote from the liquid inlet and out- 7. In a mechanically refrigerated liquid cooler, the combination of a container for the liquid to be dispensed, a mechanical refrigerating unit including an evaporating chamber located in the liquid container, means for operating the refrigerating unit, aliquid outlet conduit in the container, anda thermostatic element submerged in the liquid in the container for controllin the operating means, the said outlet `condult and the thermostatic element both being positionedv relatively remote from the' evaporating whereby both are .free from the e ect of ice formation on the evaporating chamber, andl the temperature of liquid drawn through the outlet conduit' is diregztly controlled by thesaid thermostatic element.

8. In a mechanically refrigerated liquid cooling system, the combination of a sup ly container for the liquid to be dispensed? a one-piece hollow cooling unit immersed in the iquid container and positioned out of alignment with the axis of the container and remote from the outlet thereof, a relatively large compressor for controlling the feeding of refrigerant from and to the cooling unit, a condenser, and means for maintaining the height of the refrigerant level in said cooling unit whereby to form and maintain a layer of ice around the cooling unit and within the liquid.

9. In a mechanically refrigerated liquid cooling system, the combination of a container for the liquid to be dispensed, an upright cylindrical cooling unit immersed in said liquid and positioned adjacent a wall of said container and remote from the outlet, a

chamber compressor and condenser, `*and means connectmg said condenser and cooling unit and positioned outside of said cooling unit for maintaining the level of li uid in said cooling unit close to the top w ereby a mass of ice radually increasing in diameter toward the iottom of the cylindrical cooling unit is formed and maintained.

10. In a mechanically refrigerated liquid I cooling system, the combination of a cabinet relatively high compared to its cross section, a liquid container in the top thereof, a cooling unit immersed in the liquid in said container, a compressor of relatively large capacity compared to said cooling unit and supported on a base positioned intermediate of said container and the bottom of said cabinet, and a motor and condenser positioned beneath said compressor and supported by a base at the bottom of said cabinet whereby the vibrations from said compressor and motor will be distributed through the cabinet at different points, and suitable connections between said compressor, condenser and cooling unit.

11. In a mechanically refrigerated liquid cooler, the combination of a container for the liquid to be dispensed provided with an outlet, and a refrigerant evaporating chamber positioned vertically within the container and out of alignment with the axis of the container and relatively remote from the outlet.

12. In a mechanically refrigeratedliquid cooler, the combination of a container for the liquid to be dispensed provided with an outlet, a cylindrical evaporating chamber within the li uid container and positioned vertically a jacent the wall of the container m substantially opposite from the outlet.

In testimony whereof I aiiix my signature.

FRANK R. WEST. 

